After taking most of his clothes off in the bathroom at the Gold Pan Saloon on Saturday night, a man walked back into the hallway.
“The doorman was there instantly, the guy ran into the bathroom, the cops were called, the cops came and removed him immediately,” said Adam Gerle with Northern Vision, the company that owns and manages the Gold Rush Inn and Gold Panner Saloon.
Christian James Gallan was arrested for willfully committing the indecent act of masturbating in a public place, according to the 36-year-old’s court file.
He has also been accused of two counts of breaking his probation orders to abstain from possessing or consuming alcohol, keeping the peace and being of good behaviour.
Gallan is well known in the territory’s justice system with multiple charges over the past decade ranging from harassment, breaking and entering, assault and one charge of sexual assault from an incident in August 2009.
He has been in jail, on probation, and has been charged for breaking his probation orders multiple times.
Gallan is now back in police custody until his next court appearance, scheduled for November 16, according to a Tuesday RCMP news release.
Police are investigating whether Gallan is connected to the recent rash of sexual assaults that occurred in Whitehorse over the past month.
“We’re not jumping to any conclusions,” said Cpl. Rick Aird. “But it is safe to say we’re not ruling anything out. A full investigation needs to be completed before we can make any determination.”
The entire incident was caught on the hotel’s surveillance footage, which has been given to the police, said Gerle.
But Aird could not confirm if Gallan’s appearance resembled those offered by the multiple victims of the recent assaults.
“I have not looked at the file or the pictures, so I have no idea,” he said.
Victims of recent attacks in both downtown and Riverdale told police about “good Samaritans” who intervened and helped them escape.
The RCMP hopes those, or any other witnesses, will come forward and help with the investigation.
After local women’s organizations asked the RCMP for better communication about sexual assaults on November 2, Aird has been meeting with them regularly, he said.
And in the future, earlier warnings will be issued, he added.
Saturday’s incident has also pushed Northern Vision to commit to finding a better way to secure the Gold Rush’s bathrooms, which sit between the saloon and the conference rooms.
They are directly accessible from Main Street and have been an issue of concern for a long time, said Gerle.
Contact Roxanne Stasyszyn at
roxannes@yukon-news.com